Chapter 8

The group decided to head up to Casey's grandmother's farmhouse. Splinter felt it would be best for Cassi to recover there. She'd need the fresh air once she woke up. If she woke up. She still hadn't woken up from when she passed out in the battle shell. Everyone knew the slim chances of her ever waking up again, yet they tried to remain hopeful.

The drive up to the farmhouse was quiet. No one spoke the whole way there. April tried her best to bandage Cassi's head. Leo couldn't take his eyes off Cassi. The image of her pushing him out of the way and being hit kept replaying in his mind. He could still see her lying on the ground, blood dripping from her head. What bothered him was that it should be him in a coma, not Cassi.

The other three turtles were silent as well. They all felt guilty for what had happened. If only they had tried to talk things out first. If only they had done things differently, the dark cloud wouldn't be hanging over the family. In reality, all five were to blame.

When they arrived, Leo gently picked up Cassi's limp form and carried her inside the house. Slowly, he lowered her onto the old couch. Raising her head slightly, Leo slipped a pillow underneath it. He pulled up a chair and sat beside her, waiting.

---

"I wish Cassi would wake up." Mike said sadly. "It's been a week!" He was sitting at the table in the kitchen with Raph. Donny leaned in the doorway watching Leo.

"Yeah," Don agreed, "I don't know who I'm more worried about; Leo or Cassi! He just sits there waiting for her to wake up."

"Can you blame him?" April asked, stirring a cup of tea. "Cassi is very dear to him. He can't bear the thought of losing her." I can't either April thought to herself as she set the spoon down on the cupboard. She walked into the living room and handed the cup to Leo.

"Thanks." He said, trying to give her a grateful smile.

"How is she?" April asked, hoping Leo could give her good news.

"I think she's getting worse. It's always darkest before dawn."

April placed a consoling hand on Leo's shoulder. "Yes, that's true, but there is a high chance she'll never wake up."

"I know," Leo sighed, "but there is a chance she will?" He asked with hope.

"It's not likely, but I guess it is possible. It's also possible that she can hear you. I would tell her anything you need to now. If she doesn't wake up today, we have to take her to a hospital. I know she didn't want us to, but she'll die if we don't." She turned and started back towards the kitchen. "We'll be in the other room if you need us."

Leo waited until he heard the door close, then he turned back to Cassi. April was right. What if she didn't wake up? There was still much he needed to tell her, although, Leo would feel better if he knew Cassi could hear him. He'd tell her now, and if she woke up, he'd tell her again.

"Hey Cassi," He started, "thanks for taking that blow for me. I'm glad you saved me from physical pain, but you still caused me pain. I can't bear to see you like this. Seeing you with no smile, no life. I--" He stopped to swallow a sob. "I just wish I knew whether you could hear me or not."

As if in response, Cassi moaned softly. Slowly, her eyes opened. After blinking a few times, she looked at Leo, who hadn't yet noticed that she was awake. He was looking at the ground and his tears rolled down his face. A small, weak smile spread over her face as she said softly,

"I'm listening."

Leo looked up instantly. "Cassi!" He exclaimed joyfully." I thought you were going to--"

"Leo, please. I'm still tired." Her voice was soft and hard to hear. She was very weak.

Leo took her hand. "I'm so glad you're ok."

"Leo," she whispered sadly, "just because I'm awake doesn't mean I still won't…" She couldn't bring herself to finish.

"Don't talk like that!"

"I'm a gone gecko." She said as tears rolled down her face.

---

In the kitchen, the other three boys had their ears pressed up against the door.

"Guys, stop it. Leave Leo alone." April said watching them eavesdropping on their brother.

"April, Shh! I think Cassi might be awake!" Don said, trying to concentrate on the muffled sounds he was hearing.

"She is!" Mike exclaimed. "Her voice is hard to hear, but she's talking. Although none of them could hear very well, they all managed to hear the last part of what she said.

"Gecko!" The three voices chimed. Of course! C.G., Cassiopeia Gecko! Don thought. They ran into the other room before April could stop them.

"What do you mean gecko?" Raph asked her.

"On the day we were mutated, in the jar were four turtles, you, and a gecko, me. When we fell into the mutagen, because I was covered in turtle DNA, I mutated into one. I was a turtle by the time Master Splinter got to us. I found out the truth when I was twelve." Cassi explained. They all leaned close to hear her. "I've lied and hidden a few things from you guys, but you've heard mostly the truth."

"Really?" Mikey asked. Cassi winced as she tried to nod.

"I'll let you guys try to figure them out, some are too painful for me to tell you about - yes Leo, there are some things about me that even you don't know - but I'll show you one." She said slyly as she took out her contacts. She looked up at all of them.

"You have blue eyes!" Don exclaimed. Again, she tried to nod. Talking was wearing her out.

"There's something else you need to know, about the night Splinter was gone. Stop feeling guilty about wanting to do nothing but go to bed. I can manipulate your thoughts and will you to think a certain way. That's exactly what I did that night and through part of the day. I made you all temporarily forget about Splinter, if that makes sense. Now that I've told you this, you'll probably be able to resist it, but I wouldn't do it again any ways. I'm sorry guys, really." Her voice grew somewhat quieter. She looked towards the door. "Would you mind…?" She wanted them to leave, and they understood.

"Sure Cassi." Don said as he, Raph and Mikey left the room and closed the door gently behind them. Leo looked at Cassi and tried to smile. As much as it hurt to admit it, Leo knew deep down.

"Leo," her voice was a little more than a whisper now, "have April wait about a year, then go and tell Christy. Her full name is written in a notebook in my room at home, along with some other things." Leo nodded as Cassi fiddled with her necklace. She unscrewed the glass bottom and slid the crystal in her glove. She replaced the bottom, then took off her necklace and placed it in Leo's hand. "Keep it to remember me by, please."

"I love you Cassiopeia, and I'll miss you." Leo felt his eyes burning with tears.

"I love you too, Leonardo." She told him softly, before he gently kissed her. "I guess Mikey's vision will come true after all. Please don't forget me."

"I won't Cassi, I promise." He vowed.

Cassi smiled. "Good." Her eyes closed and a peaceful expression fell upon her face. A last sigh left her. Her hand that Leo was been holding went limp as her head lolled to the side. Leo didn't need to take her pulse to know that she was gone.

"Cassi, oh Cassi…" Leo sobbed, clutching her hand close to him.

---

A short while later, Leo was sitting on the porch steps watching the summer daylight fade away. He thought back to the sunset he and Cassi had shared a week ago. She would never again watch another. He thought back to the night that they met. It was a year ago today. Cassi had died on their seventeenth birthday.

No one else knew what had happened yet. They were still in the other room. He wondered how they would react. Leo was still partly in shock. Cassi, gone. He couldn't believe it. Tears rolled down his face as he remembered the promise he made to her when she had first told him about Mike's visions. I am so sorry, Cassi. I let you down. This is all my fault.

In attempts to clear his mind, Leo looked around. The old house was surrounded by forest. His eyes settled on a rosebush growing near the house. Strange, he had never noticed it before. When he walked over to it, the turtle noticed something even stranger. It had only one blossom, and no buds. Leo cut the stem with one of his katanas and took it with him back into the house.

When he entered the house, there seemed to be a heavy feeling inside. Leo walked over to where Cassi lay. He placed the rose between her hands, trying hard not to cry, but he still did. None of this seemed real.

It was as if he was trapped in a nightmare, one he wanted desperately to wake up from. He wanted to wake and see Cassi smiling brightly at him, assuring him it was okay, she was fine. Sadly, this was no dream; it was reality. She was gone. Leo wiped his eyes and went into the other room. Everyone instantly looked up.

"So? How is she?" Casey asked.

"She's gone." Leo's voice quivered. Only April cried right away. Everyone did eventually. Maybe it was too much of a shock. Cassi was the flamboyant type; the type people think can never die. If only that were true. Leo sank down into a chair and buried his face in his hands, sobs tearing through him.

---

During the next few hours, the family prepared Cassi's funeral. Leo and Splinter went gather branches to place around her casket and on the raft. Casey and the other three turtles went to build the raft and coffin. April went to pick flowers to decorate it.

---

Mikey carried more boards over to Don. "I can't believe that she's gone." He said sadly.

Don looked at him. "I know, and I feel like it's our fault."

Raph looked up at the night sky. "She's up there somewhere because of us."

Casey looked at the three turtles as if they were nuts. "Come on guys! It's not like you dropped that flowerbox on her!" Don shook his head.

"We might as well have."

---

Leo picked up the tree branches silently. Splinter watched him while he too picked up the branches. There was something bothering his son, not just Cassiopeia's death. The look on Leo's face told the rat so.

"Something is deeply troubling you Leonardo. It is not Cassiopeia's passing." Splinter pointed out, or rather asked. He wanted to know what it was.

"Cassi knew that this would happen, sort of. She told me and I promised I wouldn't let this happened. Instead, I caused it. I let her down."

Now Splinter was curious. "How did you cause it?"

"I knocked the box down."

"And it hit her?"

"No, Master Splinter," Leo said picking up another branch. "It was going to hit me. She pushed me out of the way. It should be me dead, not her!"

"Leonardo, you are not to blame. It was her choice and cost Cassiopeia her life. She knew the risk, but she decided to save you." Leo didn't answer. He couldn't.

---

April squinted trying to make out what kind of flower she was holding. Picking them in the dark was not the easiest thing to do, yet it had to be done now. Cassi's funeral would be over by daybreak. It would be a long night, but everyone was too upset to sleep anyways. She still couldn't believe Cassi was dead. It seemed like just yesterday when they met. April couldn't help smiling as she remembered that night five years ago…

20 year old April O'Neil walked cautiously down the street. There had been a lot of gang activity around these parts. So far, so good. She was nearly home now.

As she walked by a alleyway, she was grabbed from behind and taken into it. Two gang members were there. One snatched her purse while the other held a weapon. They were about to make a break for it, but they were cut short. It was the silhouette of a young girl. April knew it was a young girl because she had pig tails and was short.

"You creeps again! You better be thankful I only have my numchuks and not my katanas with me tonight!" It was a girl's voice.

"It's the freak! Run for it!" One of the thugs yelled. The girl was running towards them, pulling out weapons. Because there was a streetlight behind the girl, April couldn't make her out. Whoever she was, she beat the men easily.

"Beat it." She snarled. The thieves obeyed and ran off as fast as their feet would carry them, moaning and cursing. The girl laughed to herself, saying something about how they weren't as tough as they thought.

"Wait!" April called to the girl as she was leaving.

The girl stopped and turned back to April.

"Thank-you. Could you bring me my purse please?" The girl was about to throw it, when April shouted, "Don't! I, uh, have breakables in it." She didn't really but she wanted to meet the girl. Every time she went closer, the girl moved away.

The girl now seemed very shy. "I can't." She said. April assumed the girl was afraid. "No, I'm not afraid of you, but you'll be afraid of me. Everyone is."

"No I won't. Come here."

The girl walked reluctantly over to April. She handed April her purse. It was then that April realized that the girl had three fingers, was green skinned and a shell. Her pigtails were really a headband. "You're a turtle." April gasped. The girl nodded. "What's your name?" April asked.

"Cassiopeia." The girl replied, surprised that April hadn't screamed or run off.

"I'm April. May I call you Cassi?" Cassi nodded as she shook April's hand. "Let me guess, you're twelve?"

Cassi smiled. "Eleven actually, but I'll be twelve in a week."

That day had changed her life. About three years later, April met the rest of the family. It was hard not to mention Cassi around the boys. She started back to the house. Of all the crazy things Cassi has done, and a flowerbox kills her. It's not right.

---

Leo and Splinter walked over behind the house to the others, carrying all the branches they could. The rest had finished building the casket and raft. April was there, her arms full of flowers. Leo went to get Cassi while everyone else stacked the branches around the coffin. April wove the flowers through the branches.

Leo walked into the house. In the living room, Cassi laid lifeless on the couch. A peaceful smile rested on her face. She didn't look like she was dead, she looked like she was asleep. The white bandage with a red stain wrapped around her head was the only thing that proved otherwise. As he wiped his eyes, he realized that he still had her necklace in his hand. He noticed that there was another engraving on the necklace!

Til next we meet

It won't be long

I'll always be with you

Leo, I'm not really gone

p.s. Tell Splinter that I'm sorry, for everything.

Leave it to Cassi to be prepared for her death. She had carved a message on it to console him. It worked; Leo felt a lot better somehow. She always did have a hard time leaving things unfinished.

'Thanks." He whispered to her. He had a feeling that she understood wherever she was.

Gently, he picked her up and carried her out of the house and around back. Her skin was cold pressed against his. Everyone was silent as Leo laid her in the casket. The rose was still in her folded hands. It took everything Leo had to close the lid. The four boys lifted the casket and put it in the back of a truck. The mutants stayed in the back, and April and Casey sat in the front.

The lake wasn't very far and the trip flew by. No one wanted to say good bye to Cassi. All too soon, they arrived at the lake. The stars twinkled like diamonds above. There wasn't a cloud for miles. Cassi would have loved it.

The four carried her out to the lake and into the water. April handed Leo a matchbook. He held it in his hand a moment. He didn't want to do it, but he knew he had to. It was one of the hardest things he ever had to do. Leo struck the match and set the branches on fire. He pushed it farther into the lake where the current would take it.

Leo walked back over to the others. He looked at Cassi's necklace.

"Master Splinter, Cassi left you a message. She said to say that she was sorry, for everything." Leo explained. Splinter looked relieved. Cassi didn't die angry with him.

"Thank-you, Leonardo." He whispered.

Leo looked out across the lake. Near the other side, a dark haired girl swam out of the water. She walked over to who Leo guessed was her boyfriend. She pointed to the burning casket. If only they knew what the world lost today. Cassi defenitly had the potential to change the world. Now she's gone.

As he watched the flames, Leo realized something. A fire can come without warning. It will burn for so long, then eventually it's gone. Where it touched will be different from how it was before the fire. Even though the fire is gone, there will be evidence everywhere that it had been there. New things will grow, and it becomes a memory, with reminders here and there so it is never truly forgotten.

Cassi had been like a fire. She came without warning into their lives one night. She was there for exactly a year, and now was gone. Cassi changed the four boys, just a bit, by teaching them a few things. Eventually they'd move on, but she'd never be forgotten.

Everyone knew deep down that what happened a week ago was in the past. They couldn't change anything. It was best to let it go. It wasn't going to be easy, but nothing ever is. It's always darkest before dawn.

As they watched the fire burn and ashes fall, the sky glowed a warm pink behind the trees.

"Good bye, Cassiopeia." Leo whispered as the tear streamed down his face. The pink turned to orange as they all said their final good byes. The sun's rays began to peek through the trees. A new day had begun.

"Guys," Leo turned to his brothers, "I'm sorry…"

"So are we." And they all meant it.

It was a new day, for new beginnings.

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A/N: so concludes The Fifth Turtle! I hope you liked it.